1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a back support device, and more particularly to a belt with a back support plate for use in applying force to the lumbar vertebrae of the human spinal column.
2. Description of Related Art
The skeleton, especially the skull, has figured importantly in human thought and imagination. Death has been. symbolized as a harvester, a skeleton carrying a scythe, who reaps all life. The skeleton remains, even after human flesh has decomposed, because the calcium and phosphorous compounds it contains do not easily decay.
The skeleton of the human consists of two major portions. The axial skeleton runs along the axis of the body and includes the skull, other bones in the head, the spinal column, ribs, and tailbone. The appendicular skeleton includes the bones in the limbs and in the girdles that attach the limbs to the spinal column; the pectoral girdle includes the collarbones and shoulder blades, And the pelvic girdle includes the large, fused hip bones.
While the bones in our bodies permit the locomotory muscles to perform their allotted tasks, they must serve many other functions as well. They provide a framework that supports the body against the pull of gravity. The bones of the spinal column and the pelvis carry most of the body weight, and permit upright standing and walking. Part of the skeleton also provides protection for delicate internal organs. The heart and lungs are well sheltered in the chest, the bones of the skull armor the brain, and the spinal column forms a bony canal surrounding the spinal column.
Despite its rigid framework, many parts of the skeleton are fragile and can be particularly troublesome. One of humankind's major medical problems involves various difficulties with the spinal column. The spinal column is a complicated body part--a stack of vertebrae cushioned by shock-absorbing discs, which are positioned between the individual vertebrae, surrounds a stem of nerves and is embedded in the center of a complex network of muscles and ligaments. Because of exertion, illness, accident, or abuse, one or more of these discs, or at least a portion of the discs, becomes ruptured or otherwise requires repair or, more often, removal.
At any given time, one out of eight people has some kind of back pain, according to one estimate. After the common cold, the common backache is the most popular reason for missing work. Most back pain results from cumulative deterioration, not a one-time action. Bending over to pick up something may be the straw that broke the camel's back, but poor posture will slowly pile on straws day after day, year after year.
Expensive high-tech imaging equipment, from x-rays to magnetic resonance imaging, often cannot detect the source of pain. Sometimes they can even throw a doctor off track. Because of this, more doctors are considering surgery only if necessary and are taking a sports medicine-like approach to treating back pain. That means tuning up, strengthening, and stretching the body instead of telling it to rest until the pain goes away. With the back in particular, everything we do, or don't do, has an impact. If our muscles are weak, the spine bears more of the weight burden, putting strain on the bones, discs, muscles, and ligaments. Poor posture and bad habits accelerate the natural degeneration of the spine.
So while back pain is one of the most common reasons for a visit to a doctor, it's one of the least understood. Various treatments and modalities have been used to treat back ailments. Osteopathic physicians and chiropractors frequently manipulate a portion of the spine to remedy back ailments. Such manipulation sometimes includes the applying of force and pressure to specific localized areas. It has been found advantageous to have such force directed at specific portions of the spine for periods of times which far exceed that normally associated with such manipulative therapy.
Prevention has now become popular to protect against the occurrence of a back injury. One means for applying force to the vertebrae of the spinal column is through wearing back support belts or braces. Today, it is common to see stockers in grocery stores or construction workers on the job site wearing a device to support the back during heavy lifting and repetitive motion situations. The supports are typically made of a woven material with a flexible core and are orthopedically designed to encourage proper lifting technique. Some of these devices are also used in a therapeutic setting, to be worn by individuals already suffering from troublesome back pain.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,127,897 describes a therapeutic back support device having a pair of laterally spaced apart belts detachably coupled about the waist of the user via belt buckles. Mounted on the forward face of the back support plate is a vertical sliding support bar to which a pair of semi-spherical members is attached. While this device may provide localized force to any selected one of a plurality of different portions of the human spine along the length of the spine, it is cumbersome and unpleasant to wear. It is an object of the present invention to provide a back support device that supplies durable support while not sacrificing comfort and which is easy to adjust to provide variable degrees of tension to the lumbar region of the spinal column.